In Genesis chapter 8, the great flood ends and Noah, his family and all the animals from the ark are reunited with land instead of an endless sea. As with many stories from the bible - especially the old testament - I was vaguely familiar with the story of Noah. God was mad at humans, God told Noah to build the ark & take the animals two by two, God sent a massive flood to destroy everything and everyone else.
I've long associated the dove with the olive branch (as well as the rainbow) in this story as God's new covenant with humanity never to destroy them again. The dove was God's promise. I see images of the dove with the olive branch everywhere as symbols of peace. The olive branch as a symbol of peace derives from early Greek mythology in which the goddess of peace, Eirene, is often depicted with an olive branch. The wikipedia article and other internet search results claim that the dove part of the symbol originates from the gospels as an interpretation of the Holy Spirit ("As he was praying, the sky opened up and the Holy Spirit, like a dove descending, came down on him." Luke 3:22 MSG) Yet it shows up in the story of Noah in the first few chapters of the entire bible, and a lot of the search results that cite this reference reinforce my previous belief of the dove as the sign of the end of the flood, God's new covenant.
Except that it's not! =O
I have a tattoo I designed of a dove in flight with the olive branch in its beak, which I love, on the outside of my right ankle. I got it as the symbol of peace and often have referred to it as God's promise. During one of the bible studies in treatment, God prompted me to examine the story of Noah to better understand my dove. Being God, he picked the most appropriate time to reveal the truth of this symbol to me.
Yes, it is a symbol of peace, but it was not the sign of the end of the flood. It was a sign that the end of the flood was NEAR.
The five translations of the bible I have all say this in different ways in Gen 8:11b:
"Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth." NIV
"So Noah knew the waters had lessened on the earth." NAB
"Then Noah knew that the floodwaters were almost gone." NLT
"Noah knew then that the water had subsided from the earth." Oxford Study Bible (Revised English Bible)
"Noah knew that the flood was about finished." MSG
My NIV has a note explaining, "The olive leaf carried by the dove told Noah that lower elevations (where olives grew) were above water and had sprouted new life."
This revelation had a profound impact on me and made my tattoo have much more meaning to me than before. The end of the flood is near. I made it through the storm and soon will walk on dry land. God has not left me to drift aimlessly and endlessly at sea.
While the dove still could be seen as a promise from God, the rainbow, not the dove, is the sign of God's covenant. "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and everything living around you and everyone living after you. I'm putting my rainbow in the clouds, a sign of the covenant between me and the Earth." Gen. 9:12-13 (MSG) The dove is the preview, a sign that the covenant, a promise never to bring such a flood again, will soon be here. The Dove says, "Hang in there. It's almost over. You made it."
Amen! :D
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